Evaluating the effects of smartening on the sustainability of small towns, case study: Nowshahr

Due to the growing trend of urban population all around the world, especially in developing countries, in the immediate future we will face a predominantly urban world that to meet their needs, urban land will be exploited beyond Its threshold of ecology and people will demand their needs from city officials and managers as a result. The theory of smart city, which was formed based on the answer to the many problems of urban dwellers in the 90s, presented the issues of sustainability such as mixed land use, easy accessibility, preservation of the natural environment, etc. in the field of urban planning and urbanism. This theory demonstrated the points that while supporting modern urban life, can solve its problems in the form of following and implementing new urban planning techniques in the heart of existing cities and in contrast to urban sprawl.

Aims and Objective:

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of smartening on the sustainability of Nowshahr as one of the small cities in Iran.

the present study is of the type of applied research. Questionnaire, interview and field observation tools were used to collect information. Using a questionnaire, 383 citizens participated and the findings of this section using statistical techniques, factor analysis and one-sample t-test and coefficient Pearson correlation was analyzed in SPSS software.

In examining the correlation coefficient between intelligence and sustainability, it is found that there is a direct and strong correlation between these two variables in Nowshahr. The results of the one-sample t-test show that the status of intelligent variables in Nowshahr is not in a good position with a stability approach. The results of factor analysis have shown that among the six indicators of smartening, "smart governance" with a factor load of 0.853 has the highest priority in the eyes of experts and specialists in smartening Nowshahr with a sustainable approach. "Smart people" with a factor load of 0.847 and "smart environment" with a factor load of 0.836 have the highest importance in terms of average factor load. In order to develop the level of smartness and sustainability in Nowshahr, a strategy can be developed by urban management along with local sustainability indicators in order to improve the level of services to citizens.